Opportunities for Women Available in Many Areas of Technology, CompTIA Advancing Women in IT Community Says

Groups intends to spread message, offer career guidance to women, young women and girls

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Feb 25, 2014, 08:45 ET

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Feb. 25, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Career opportunities for women abound in the information technology (IT) industry and employers would be wise to tap this under-utilized resource, according to leaders of the CompTIA Advancing Women in IT Community, a volunteer group organized by CompTIA, the leading non-profit association for the IT industry.

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"If the world is an oyster, then the world of IT is one of the pearls for women," said Doriana Allyn, senior environmental health and safety manager for Brother International Corporation, and community chair.

"There are huge numbers of opportunities for women in many areas of IT," Allyn continued. "It's not just tool bag and repair, but careers in legislation, environmental issues, marketing and many other areas."

"IT is one of those fields that we really can change the way we live, work, learn and play," added Michelle Ragusa-McBain, manager, Global Ingram-Customer Partner Experience for Cisco and community vice-chair.

Just 24 percent of the U.S. IT workforce is female, a percentage that keeps dropping, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

In 2014, the CompTIA Advancing Women in IT Community has set an ambitious goal of reaching out to 10,000 individuals about the opportunities available to women in the IT field. This includes women, young women, girls and prospective employers because, as Allyn noted, "hiring women is a wise choice."

The community plans to unveil a new evangelism platform later this year and is seeking volunteers to help create and implement that platform.

"Our goal is to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education to young women in junior high and high school," said Ragusa-McBain. "We're also interested in reaching out to female veterans seeking post-military careers and professional women in other fields who may be ready for a career change."

Other volunteers serving on the Advancing Women in IT executive committee in 2014 include:

Lori Berry, director, strategic technology, Collabrance
Jean Mork Bredeson, president, Service 800
Theresa Caragol, global vice president, channels and partners, Extreme Networks
Hilary Gadda, director, telepartner channel, TelePacific Communications
Cristina Greysman, director, channel programs, SunGard Availability Services
Mary Ellen Grom, vice president, U.S. marketing, SYNNEX Corporation
Robin Haggerty, vice president, client management, Field Solutions Inc.
Lindsay Rufa Hall, director of channel and strategic partnerships, Stratosphere Networks, LLC
John Mehrmann, chief executive officer, Brainhunter
Stacey Powell, vice president, business development, printing and personal systems, Sytems Maintenance Services
Nellie C. Scott, director, services sales support and enablement, Lenovo